Genetic diversity of horses and chickens – a review

Abstract

The diversity of farm animals is the result of the domestication of species through a long process of migration, selection, adaptation, and other natural events. This species diversity of farm animals needs to be conserved through demographic characteristics, recording of the production environment, and effective data management. In this process, the data presented based on molecular biology tracing becomes very important because of the discovery of so many breeds livestock found today, especially horses and chickens. Data based on production records or morphological characteristics becomes difficult to use in an effort to determine the species hierarchy of horses and chickens, especially in population studies that are mostly carried out in livestock studies. Through molecular studies, variations in the genetic diversity of horses and chickens will be easier to understand. The domestication of chickens is believed to be the result of several domestication events, most notably the red jungle fowl (Gallus gallus) and may also involve Gallus sonneratii and possibly Gallus lafayettii. Horses were domesticated in broad areas of Eurasia steppe. It is thought that mares underwent the domestication process many times, but few stallions contributed to the genetic formation of domesticated horses.

Keywords: Genetic Diversity, Horses, Chickens, Domestication, Livestock genetic database